Love Streamer
by Fantastical Chaos
Summary: Sequel to Love Hater. Do you know who the scariest people are? People like me. Just know I'm not amongst the scariest people because I'm a psycho, although that is a good reason to fear me. I'm amongst the scariest because people like me have nothing left to lose. Three-shot.
1. Part 1

**Disclaimer: I in no way, shape, or form own Vocaloid. Each character used belongs to the respective company that produced him/her; I merely borrowed them for non-profit entertainment purposes. The Hatsune Miku song Streaming Heart, of which this fanfic is based, belongs to DECO*27. Please give credit to him and check out the original song. It's amazing.** **Regardless, I do claim ownership to the cover art and words below. Please enjoy.**

* * *

 **Do you know who the scariest people are?**

 **People like me.**

 **I will rip you apart as I wear a big smile on my face. Your cries of pain will be like music to my ears. There's nothing you could ever hope to offer me that would make me consider sparing you.**

 **Just know I'm not amongst the scariest people because I'm a psycho, although that is a good reason to fear me.**

 **I'm amongst the scariest because people like me have nothing left to lose.**

 _He loved me. All this time, he loved me. The proof was right there in front of me. Why couldn't I see it? Wasn't it what I wanted to see? Did I not see it because I refused to?_

I hugged my knees closer to my chest, the warm night air my only embrace. It had been three weeks, yet my heart still ached the way it did when Nero pushed me into that portal, sacrificing himself for me. _Is he still alive? Do I want the answer to that question?_

When we fled the attack, Rui and Zeito took us to a friend of theirs who lives in one of the European pockets of the Love World. There they, Miku, Mikuo, Len, and me hid from the worlds. Rui, upon finding shelter, looked at the wound I had received shortly before Nero threw me into the portal, and it didn't surprise me to learn that I truly did lose my eye. Yet eyepatch or no, I wasn't allowed to go out often. None of us were, but I was able to sneak off once or twice to figure out how life got along without us.

People were noticing that Len and I were gone. Of course nobody wanted to overreact, but some were beginning to worry. Len and I eavesdropped on the conversation of Love Makers we both know, and we learned everything about our status with our friends from there.

Those who know Miku and Mikuo took more action. Each ones' respective adopted family filed a missing person report ages ago. The mysterious disappearance of the two were widely covered in the news. Many continued to hope, but others now feared the worst. Some had given up entirely.

As for Nero, he was the most missed. Nero had a lot of friends in more than one Love World. He was kind, social, and just all around very likable. Many people organized hunting parties for their missing friend. Some had even written articles in the Love World newspapers about how empty their lives were without him. Reading them made my heart ache. I should have stopped after the first article, yet I kept collecting and reading them as if they kept the secrets of the universes in their pages.

Truth be told, I don't know why I couldn't stand Nero for so many years. Maybe it was because he was everything I didn't want to be, everything I couldn't be if no one was to suspect a thing. After he gave up everything to help me find Len and we spent that time getting to know each other better, I realized that I tolerated him more and more as the days passed. Until finally . . . I'm not sure. He grew on me, I can say that much.

Although I can never say for sure, I think going through what we did together was what changed my overall feelings for Nero. He was the only rock I could stand on, and yet he never made me feel less than for it. If not for him, I don't think I ever could have gone through any of it.

That's why I was so confused. _Do I really care for Nero in return? Do I . . . love him, even in not that way? Or do I really just feel an immense feeling of gratitude and feel as if it's only right that I return Nero's feelings for what he's done?_

You see, I didn't want to put the wrong label on what I felt. If I told myself that I was . . . _in love_ with Nero, I would try to convince myself that it was true. With that would come doing everything I could to please him when we were reunited, assuming that he was still alive, and living my life for him. Then one day, possibly months or even years later, I would come to realize that I wasn't so sure of my feelings than I thought. What would result from there wouldn't be pleasant for either of us.

This isn't a rare thing to happen, either. Sometimes a person doesn't understand what he's feeling and believes that he's in love with someone he doesn't even like. I've broken up enough couples like that to know how true my words are. I didn't want to be one of those people. If I planned to, I don't know, start a relationship with Nero, it should be because I want to and not because I feel as if I owe him that. I didn't doubt that if I asked him, he would have felt the same way.

Hehehe, sorry. This is very awkward for me to talk about, but you can see that I put a lot of thought into it. Why did you want to know my emotions when it came to Nero?

Oh, you're not going to answer me?

Fine, I'll move on, but don't think I won't be forgetting this any time soon.

During one of those times, Len met me on the rooftops of the hideout. He casually made his way to my side and sat down next to me without sparing a single glance. Funny how he and I always spend time on the roof together, huh?

"You're not concerned about pushing me off, Brother?" I asked.

Len and Miku still had their violent outbursts, but they were rare and resulted in little to no damage. After both Love Wreckers had a couple breakdowns each, Rui noticed that Mikuo and I were better able to calm Miku and Len down, respectively. Something about their siblings talking softly to them got through whatever vicious thing was going through their mind and eating away at their soul. I could get through to Len better than anyone, and Mikuo, who had not met Miku until three weeks ago, had a better time calling her down than Len, the person who knew Miku best of us all.

"It's okay if you fall all the way down because you'll walk away unharmed," Len answered, not even blinking an eye. "How about you? Are _you_ concerned that I'll push you off?"

I snort. "Nah. You know if I go down I'm taking you with me. There's no way you would risk that."

Chuckling, Len lightly punched me in the shoulder. Then the playfulness faded. His face somber, Len said, "We'll get him back. I don't know how or when, but we will find Nero. After everything he's done for us, we won't abandon him."

"Except we already did." I didn't say the words in accusation. If someone was to blame for Nero's getting left behind, it was me. I should have dragged him with me, or stayed so that he wouldn't be captured alone. "Besides," I reluctantly added, "how are we supposed to know if Nero is still alive? Your talk of getting him back could be nothing but empty words."

"I know that." Len sighed in defeat. "I fear the worst, too, but it doesn't help to accept defeat when we don't know if we already lost."

"Then what do you suggest we do?"

"Hope that for one reason or another, those horrible people spared Nero." Shrugging, Len told me what he feared. What I feared. What we feared more than being found. "They might need him for information. Whether it's information from him or about him or-"

I did Len a favor by cutting him off. "How does that help? I think we both can agree that if such is Nero's alternative, then we would rather he have died in that attack."

"What I was trying to say was," Len said, getting back on track, "if Nero's still alive, then there's still a chance to save him. If that chance exists, then we have a motive to figure out what's going on and what to do about it. Instead of sitting around and waiting for something to happen, we will make something happen. Isn't that what you'd rather be doing, Sister? Getting something, anything done instead of doing nothing?"

Of course, what Len said was encouraging, but I'm not necessarily an optimist. "Yet we don't know if any of it will be for naught. We might help Nero, but we might also somehow, one way or another, make everything worse for him."

That was when Len looked me hard and long in the eye. My new eyepatch upset him more than it upset me, so I knew he was serious when he was able to look at me without flinching away. If anyone, he was going to convince me the bright side exists. "This is where we have to believe in the best possible outcome. Without faith, everything we do is pointless. Even if our hope is in nothing, it's always better than running around aimlessly."

As much as I didn't want to admit it, Len had a point. Anything was better than moping around like an angsty teen, but there were still some issues to be concerned with. "How do we begin to take action?" I challenged. "Where do we start? What information do we have to set up a game plan?"

Len tried to not look defeated at my painfully true questions, but he wasn't about to give up just like that either. "We are still waiting to hear from everyone else what exactly happened that day. Heck, we still don't know if we were found out or if one of the spies turned on us. However, when we make contact, we will find out everything we can. Even if we have to demand the information from whomever we make communication with."

It took a lot of self-control to not snort. "Listen to you. Brother, you sound like a proper Love Wrecker."

Cheeks turning pink, Len averted his eyes and chose instead to stare at his knuckles. "I still can't believe how much they changed in that time. Who would I be now if I didn't get out sooner?"

Instincts kicking in, I reached out and took my Len's hand. "Don't be stupid. You're my brother, and nothing could ever, ever change that."

He gave my fingers a squeeze. "No matter how much you try to convince me otherwise, I still feel as if this is my fault in some way. I can't stop believing that I failed you when you needed me most."

"Here's a place to meet halfway," I tried. "Let's agree that we both suck." This gets a genuine smile from Len. "We can sit here all night blaming ourselves for things out of our control, but where would that take us? All it would do is make us feel worse about ourselves when we shouldn't even feel this way in the first place. If we're going to start moving forward, I think we have to begin by letting the guilt go and living each day the best we can."

Len considered this, then shrugged. "I don't see why you can't be right. If you're willing to give it a shot, then so am I."

Nothing could stop the smile from spreading on my face. "I love you, Len. No matter what has happened or will happen, I still love you more than anyone."

"I love you, too." Len leaned closer and kissed my forehead. "Now let's get inside. There will be plenty of time to move forward tomorrow. Right now, I want to go to bed."

* * *

 **Don't be scared. I won't hurt you.**

 **There's no reason to be afraid. Not unless you threaten those I love and hurt the people I care about. If you so much as think about acting against my friends and family, you should be afraid.**

 **Still scared? Then maybe you need to run before I realize what you did to my loved ones. Trust me, it won't be pretty once I get my hands on you.**

Our hostess was a very . . . _interesting_ woman named Ona. Now don't get me wrong, she was by no means a bad person. However, she seemed off.

"Are you sure we're safe here?" Len asked the same day Ona took us under her wing.

"Of course we're safe here," Rui, who was bandaging my head where my eye was, said. "Ona has helped Zeito and I plenty of times in the past. There's no one I trust more."

"And she's a fantastic gunslinger, too," Zeito cut in. "Ona can shoot an apple off your head from across the lawn. If you're looking for someplace safe, this is it."

Len, Miku, and I had our doubts, but we didn't question the two. The thing about Ona is she doesn't talk. She can, or so Rui and Zeito claimed, but none of the three of us ever heard her speak. Her movements were stiff and robotic somehow, but she seemed to be all flesh. If something happened in her past to make her like that, it had to be have been pretty freaking traumatic.

During the three weeks there, Miku and Mikuo got to know each other. Whenever they interacted, it was obvious how awkward and forced their words were. It saddened me, really. I don't know who I would be without Len. Everything I am is because of my brother. If anything ever happened to him, I wouldn't be able to live with myself. Yet here these two were, sister and brother, and they had no relationship. Well, they did try, but there was no foundation on which to build a relationship on. Although siblings of our kind aren't known for getting along, I had never seen a pair fail to get along like that before.

As for the others, Miku got along well enough with Rui and Zeito, she and Len almost never spoke together, and she and I got along all right. Now Miku and I didn't exactly become friends. Truth is, she still didn't trust me, but I was the person she liked most of the group; and if I'm being honest, I liked her too. I would never have called her my friend, but I didn't doubt then and I don't doubt now that in another life, we would have been best friends.

"How are you holding up?" she asked the morning after Len's and my night on the roof. We were at the table, the first ones awake in the home. Both of us gripped our mugs of coffee like if we held on hard enough, our problems would go away. I wish that was how it works.

Ona wiped the counters, her motions slow and calculated. Her eyes focused only one what was ahead. If she took notice of Miku's and my presence, she didn't show it.

"Worried," I answered, ignoring the strange woman. "I try not to dwell on it too much, but the truth is I can't stop thinking about what they did to Nero. What they're _doing_ to Nero if he's still alive. I'm afraid, and fear is a monster that isn't defeated easily."

Staring intently into her mug at the black coffee, Miku chewed her lower lip. "I can't even sleep at night." I was surprised that she would confess this to me, and more surprised that she kept talking. "Every time I close my eyes, I see them. I keep seeing them! I was nothing more than an experiment, and I can't imagine what I'll be forced to go through if they find me again. The fear is so strong that I can't sleep at night because I believe that if I let my guard down, they will take me again. They will take me, and this time, I won't be getting out." Now that she mentioned it, I noticed how dark the rings under her eyes were. Did Len's look the same?

I didn't have an answer to that, so I didn't say anything. We sipped our coffee, and all was silence. Then, out of nowhere, Mikuo burst through the door. Miku and I both looked at each other before looking at him. Even Ona had her eyes more open and her eyebrows more raised than normal. None of us knew that Mikuo was gone.

"Why are you so panic-stricken?" I asked. Mikuo's eyes were wide, his hair a wild, unkempt mess, and his skin shone from a thin layer of sweat.

"They're after you," Mikuo said, his words not exactly an answer I wanted to hear. "Somebody tipped off our location, that's how they found us the first time. Now it's happened again. The Streamers are coming, and they're not leaving without Miku and Len."

Chalk white, Miku dropped her mug. The crash screamed louder than it normally would have. The ceramic pieces flied across the floor, and the hot liquid seeped into my socks. For some reason, I could feel everything except fear for what Mikuo had said. He couldn't be right, could he?

"Then what are we doing standing around here for?" I jumped to my feet and began running down the hall. "We have to wake the others! Nobody is getting taken, not if I can help it."

Mikuo called after me, but I didn't listen. I barged into Len and Zeito's room and yelled at the two. The first to wake was Len, and he reacted by throwing his arms out to defend himself against an imaginary attacker. I supposed Miku wasn't the only one who was too scared to sleep. Zeito, on the other hand, mumbled a lazy, "Five more minutes."

"Five more minutes, and the Streamers will be here," I announced. That got both of them to look directly at me. "Get dressed. I'm going to wake Rui."

Before I could do just that, I was grabbed from behind. Screaming through the hand that covered my mouth, I jabbed my elbow into the ribs of the person behind me. I think I landed a pretty good hit.

"Rin, stop. Stop! Rin, it's me. Mikuo."

Stopping right then, I looked back at the guys to see them dressing in whatever they can find. When Mikuo let me go, I spun around and glared at him. "What were you grabbing me like that for? You can't just announce that we're in danger and then snatch me from behind like an attacker. Don't think I would have killed you if I thought I really needed to defend myself."

"Good to know you're on red alert," Mikuo began, "but we can't just get up and go. We don't even have a pocket portal. How are we supposed to escape?"

"Trying." I shake him off. "I'd rather be caught in an escape attempt that be caught because I didn't even try."

It was as I said this that Len and Zeito burst out of their room. "What are we going to do, Rin?" Len asked.

"And where's Rui and Ona?" Zeito added.

"We still need to gather everyone," I answered, "but I think . . ." I trailed off. It was a stupid idea, but it was better than no idea.

I thought of Nero as I brushed my bangs over my eyepatch. No headband for me today, or perhaps ever again. My eye was the sacrifice I made to save everyone, and Nero possibly sacrificed his life to save mine. That was already more sacrifice than I was willing to live through back-to-back, but there was still more to be done.

"My idea is pretty stupid," I tried again, "but I think it might just work."


	2. Part 2

**Run, run, run. As fast as you can.**

 **Are you running to something?**

 **Are you running from something?**

 **Are you just running?**

 **Run, run, run. Before they get you.**

With an awkwardness I never knew I had, I pushed the sliding sunglasses back up my nose. They didn't really fit over the eyepatch, still hidden behind my bangs, but it was the best I could hope for. Miku kept readjusting her baseball cap. Len fidgeted where he stood. Only Rui, Zeito, and Mikuo looked as if they knew what they were doing. It may have been my idea, and one that was accepted only out of desperation, but they seemed to be the most confident in it.

Then again, just because they appeared confident didn't mean they were totally trusting these lame disguises.

Hide in plain sight. That was my strategy. No one could think of anything better. With no other options, we settled. So far, it was working.

Of course, I had no plans to celebrate until we were sure that we were out of the pressing dangers that forced us to flee in the first place.

With little time to escape, we ran to the portal in the middle of this Love World. Love Wreckers and Love Makers alike looked at the six of us – Ona had chosen to stay behind – as we frantically dashed to the center of the market place, but no one stopped us. It struck me as odd that we didn't run into any opposition during our trek there. Did the rogues not take any of the main portals? Did they have their own pocket portals? Rui said that as far as she knew, the technology belonged only to Tonio's groups. Did the Streamers take any pocket portals for themselves when they invaded the place in which Nero and I had spent many weeks together? Were they using them now to go directly to where we were supposed to be?

I had no answers to any of the questions. It didn't cross my mind to ask myself any of them. Up to that point, I had only focused on getting the six of us safely through the portal, have us go somewhere – anywhere – within the human world, and alter our appearances just enough so that we would need a second glance for a rogue Love Wrecker to know who we are.

Hopefully nobody would spare us a second glance.

We made it through, went someplace we deemed "safe," and waited. Ona was supposed to meet up with us after she saw the army that was trying to capture us and observed how many there were and how they reacted when they couldn't find us. She was supposed to. While we waited for her, the rest of us wandered around like those incredibly lost – which we were, but nobody else needed to know that. Agonizing minutes turned into soul wrenching hours, and still Ona didn't show. We had walked down every street, looked through ever shop, and rested at every café, but there was still no sign of Ona. We needed to figure out what we were going to do: we couldn't wander forever. People were already started to give us strange looks, and it was only a matter of time before someone called the police to report our suspicious behavior.

"We need to find somewhere to stop for the night." It was Len who finally made the suggestion. "If we keep wandering around like we have, it will only be a matter of time before we're found by the wrong people. We have to stop."

Nobody argued. I think we all wanted to keep going in order to escape the monsters that would never cease chasing us, but I believe we all wanted to rest more. To lie down in a warm bed, to see some of your closest friends by your side, to laugh at the nonsense things friends say and do when they're together – that's what I tried to pretend. Maybe if I thought of this as a fun sleepover, then maybe I could sleep through that night without worrying about being caught or worrying about what was happening to Nero as I lied my head down for the night. If I just pretended hard enough, I could forget, even momentarily.

I didn't pretend hard enough.

Deeming it too risky to rent a motel room, we found a quiet place under a bridge to rest till sunrise. Fortunately, no homeless people came by and demanded that we leave their spot. Other than the sounds and lights coming from the passing vehicles above us, there were no signs of life. No owls or rats dared come into our view. Even the river beside us seemed empty of life. For the night, we could falsely convince ourselves that we were truly, utterly alone.

Thank goodness that it was near summer when this happened. Nobody had to start a fire, and nobody would have if we really needed it. The smoke from the flames would attract unwanted attention, and I think it goes without saying that we would have rather froze to death that night than risk being found and captured by the Streamers.

For hours we didn't sleep. The six of us watched the sun set and maintained a steady, hushed conversation. There was no time to waste. We needed an action plan, and we needed it now.

"Maybe we could find another hideout. . . ." Rui suggested the idea, but her trailing voice told us how confident she was in the plan.

"We could stay in the human world and pretend to be homeless." Zeito shrugged. "Just until we can find someone to help, that is."

"Can't we just go to the police?" Miku suggested. She had her knees tucked closely to her chest, and her glasses were foggy. From oncoming tears, I guessed. "Isn't there a police system in the Love World that will help us?"

"It's too risky." Len shook his head. He and I sat next to each other, my head on his shoulder. I didn't want to participate. Not yet. I needed to see what everyone else was thinking before I made any unnecessary comments.

"People like Rin and Len," Mikuo winced, "people like _you and me_ , don't belong in their society. It would be no different than you or I, as Americans, going to the Mexican police."

"But what about Rin and Len?" Miku asked, brows furrowed. "Won't the people in the Love World they grew up in be more sympathetic? They wouldn't just leave us to the Streamers!"

"They would if they knew what Rin and Len are," Rui answered. "The existence of you four alone challenges a system that has been in motion since the beginning of our time. Love People have no other way to cling to. It would be the same as proving to any religious group that their god isn't real. They either lose faith entirely, life no longer has meaning, and everything they have ever known from there spirals out of control, or they hold onto their faith anyway and murder those who dare speak otherwise." Miku paled. Rui narrowed her eyes. "Do you now see why we can't just 'go to the police'?" Her face ashen, Miku nodded.

"Are you saying that we're going to have to live life constantly on the move?" Len screwed his face up. "That if we are to live, we have to either be running or hiding? This can't be right!"

"Oh, Brother, it is." I weave my fingers through Len's. When I did that, I noticed Miku watch the motion and then quickly turn her head away. Her demeanor was one I couldn't read. "Don't you know by now that nobody wants to accept anything they can't understand? They would rather destroy it. You're aware of this, aren't you?"

"Of course I am." Len sighed. "It's just . . . if this was how life was going to end up for us anyway, shouldn't we have started it sooner rather than later? At least none of this would be happening right now."

"Now's not the time for regrets," Rui cut in. "All we have left to do is move forward."

"Just where exactly is forward, Rui?" Zeito asked.

Opening and closing her mouth, Rui stared at each of us before finally answering, "I don't know." She settled closer to Zeito. "I really don't know."

All the while, Mikuo watched us in silence. He rarely spoke after that. Hugging his arms to his chest, he watched with a haunting look in his eyes. I didn't know what it meant, but I would have ended him in a heartbeat right then and there if I did.

* * *

 **Let it be known.**

 **Don't be mistaken.**

 **You might be hurting someone by going after those they love, but you're also giving them one more reason to hate you.**

With no other plans to work towards, we settled for Zeito's idea to live like homeless people. In constant motion, we never had time to take in where we were. The only time our location mattered was when we needed to find someplace to rest each night. As the days continued to pass, we continued to look more and more the homeless part.

Truly, we were homeless. None of us had a place to go back to, a family to take us in. Not at any moment did we feel safe. We kept checking behind our backs, just waiting for our pursuers to catch up with us and take us over once again. Good thing I had spent my entire life under such mental and emotional stress, or else I would have slowly submerged into a mad wreck. I know this because that's exactly what Miku was doing.

"Why don't we just turn ourselves in already?!" she demanded one evening as we walked down the road. We had entered the country the day before and continued to follow the path until we came by an old town or something. There was no idea what we were going to find. Nobody knew what to do anymore. All we knew we wanted was to be out of the open, where anyone and everyone could see us.

"Are you crazy?" I glared at her. We were walking side-by-side, but that was going to change real fast if she didn't stop her handwringing and mumbling. She and I walked behind everyone else, so no one would see me trip Miku and keep walking as we left her in the dust.

"I can't take this anymore!" Tears poured from her eyes. "If they're going to find us anyway, then why don't we just turn ourselves in and get it over with? Carrying all this pressure is no way to live."

"Welcome to fourteen years of my life," I snarled. "Do you remember what they did when they had you? Because I only know what Len told me, and that alone still gives me nightmares! How is this worse than experiencing that? We might not be safe, nor will we ever be again, but at least we're not being treated as guinea pigs."

"But if we're never going to be safe again, then why are we even trying?"

I won't pretend that Miku didn't get me there, but I still had my answer ready for her. "Because we can't just give up. That would be a worse existence, don't you think? To just let it all go and have nothing to look forward to? To abandon all hopes and dreams? Is that what you want? Is that what you really want?"

Her shoulders shook, and she tried to hide her misty eyes behind her bangs. Wiping her nose before hugging herself, Miku simply whispered, "I just want to stop being so scared. I want to stop fearing and to stop hurting. When will it stop?"

Not knowing why I did it, I reached out and placed a hand on Miku's shoulder. If everyone else was listening on our conversation, they did nothing to show it. "I'm sorry I hurt you," I told Miku. "Perhaps Len was right all along. Maybe I am too cruel."

"Hell yeah, you are." Despite everything, it must have no longer been a touchy subject for Miku. She smiled as she continued, "You got me physically, mentally, and emotionally, Rin. You're worse than any ex-boyfriend I'll ever have."

Her comment made me chuckle. "I wanted to make sure that you would never, ever get back with Kaito, and now I realize that I unconsciously made sure that I could never have a chance with you, either. Guess the most I can hope for from you now is a relationship as allies?"

"You really played yourself on never getting more from me, huh?"

"Seems so, my dear. Seems so."

It wasn't until she and I were smiling at each other, shoulders shaking with restrained laughs that I realized what we were doing. I never truly understood how friendships work. Were they something that built over an extended period of time? Were they born in an instant? Did you not know that you were friends with someone until moments like this? Not until then, Miku was just someone I felt obligated to help because I was the very reason she went through all of this in the first place. After we shared our deep conversations and joked around look old pals, I discovered that I genuinely liked her as a person and was willing to do everything within my power to protect her.

In another life, we would have been best friends. With the life we've been given, I guess . . . whatever this was would have to do. Were we friends? I don't know, but in that moment, of course we were.

"Len does care for you," I told Miku, ready to dive back into the deep end of the conversation pool. She, on the other hand, did not look eager, but I continued forward anyway. "He might suck at showing it, but Len does care about you in a way he doesn't care about anyone else."

Eyes drawn away, Miku replied, hugging herself, "He told me that he didn't love me anymore. He said that I had become someone who wasn't afraid to destroy another's happiness at the sake of her own, someone he could never love."

"It's not you Len could never love, but those traits." It was my turn to hug myself. "That's typical behavior for a Love Wrecker, you know. Len hates all the Love Wrecker stereotypes. They're what I had to become, what he never wanted to be. You gave up and gave in to your true nature, and all this time, Len had fought it. I don't think it was you he fell out of love with. It was watching you become what he never wanted to be that convinced him that he was wrong to have feelings for you."

For a while, neither of us said anything. We both stared at the back of Len's head. He could tell he was being watched, too. Every so often, he would turn around and look at us. The first few times, he would smile. After he had turned around one too many times, he began to look at us with concern.

 _"You okay?"_ he mouthed at one point.

 _"Fine,"_ I mouthed back. It was a lie. I knew it. He knew it. He knew I knew it. Yet he turned around and kept walking forward. By now Rui, Zeito, and Mikuo were having a full-on conversation. Their topics were mainly trips down memory lane, so there wasn't much room for Len to participate. He seemed all right just listening to the three talk, however, so I didn't think much about it.

"He really does love you," Miku finally said, shattering the silence between us. "Len, I mean. He spoke of you often when we were together. If it came down to it, he would lay his life down for you in a heartbeat."

"It better not come down to it." I shook my head, hyperaware of my eyepatch once again. It was easy to forget, but when I thought about it, this was something I couldn't take my mind off of. "If anyone else has to be hurt, I don't know what I'd do. This has gone on long enough already."

"Agreed." Miku sighed. "Agreed."

* * *

 **At what point do you give up on those you love? When is it too late? Is it ever too late?**

 **Before, I would scoff at those who would risk everything for those they loved.**

 **Yet the hypocrite I was had done the exact same thing this entire time.**

We had traveled for days we could no longer number. The last time we had eaten even a scrap of food was a distant memory. Our clothes, having spent ages clinging to our sweaty bodies, were as good as a part of our flesh. Wearing shoes that have worn out, our feet ached with each step. How far had we traveled? Why did we keep moving forward? What or who were we hoping to find?

Mikuo was the one who was most insistent that we stick to this seemingly pointless plan. Sooner or later, our friends would find us. We would be under protection again. There was no reason to fear.

And the fool that I was believed those lies.

"If anything ever happens to me," I whispered to Miku one night, "blame the person you would least suspect."

Wide-eyed, Miku shot her face in my direction so that she could look straight at me. That night we slept in an alley, snuggled between dumpsters and other rotting trash. The others were nearby, but the steady breathing they displayed for the past hour indicated that they were asleep. Only Miku's restlessness gave away that she was awake.

"Why would you say something like that?" she whispered, her words more horror-stricken then I would imagine. The fear of being caught still hovered over her like an anvil that would drop at any moment, but by this point, she had learned to conceal her emotions a lot better. Her showing fear now told me that if I had reason to worry, then she had all reasons in the world to fear the worst.

"Call it paranoia, but I have a feeling the Streamers weren't really after us that day."

Miku didn't respond. All she did was turn onto her other side, facing away from me. Whatever was going through her head, she was not going to let any of it show. If that's how she wanted to be, fine.

Ironically enough, it was three nights later that it happened.

Perhaps it was the uncomfortable position I was in, or maybe it was something more I could never be able to explain, but I woke up in the dead of the night, my skin clammy from a cold sweat. If I had a nightmare, I didn't recall it. I quickly evaluated my surroundings. Len, Miku, Rui, and Zeito were asleep. Mikuo was nowhere to be found.

Heart caught in my throat, I slowly rose to shaky feet and began to search for him. He woke up and had to use the bathroom, right? Just something that normal, right? Why else would he be gone?

Ignoring the warning bells that went off in my head, ordering I stay exactly where I was, I rolled over and pushed myself to my feet. I should have woken someone up to go with me. The fear of being wrong and worrying another for no reason stopped me from seeking the company I needed. Had I been a bit braver in taking that chance, perhaps the events that immediately followed would not have taken place.

The voices were what I heard first after I traveled a few blocks. The tones I picked up next. I stopped in my tracks.

"They're tired, hungry, and weak – all from this pointless travel. What more do you require from me? Hasn't this whole unplanned road trip been enough?"

I froze, blood pounding in my ears. That was Mikuo. The little bi-

"Tie up the blonde girl and gag your sister, and then we will consider your work satisfactory." This voice belonged to a woman. Her pitch was high, but her words came out in quick bites. "In case you have forgotten, your sister isn't bound. As for that pretend Love Wrecker . . ." A sigh. "Her brother was bad enough, and if she's half as bad as I expect her to be, I don't want to take any chances."

Silence, and then, "I understand."

"Well I freaking don't."

Okay, perhaps it was pretty stupid to come out of hiding and make myself known, but I was acting purely on instinct. None of my actions were thought through. As reckless as it is, that's when I'm my most brave. I have yet to decide if that's a bad thing.

"What the actual hell, Mikuo?" I threw my arms up. "How long have you been going behind everyone's back? After Nero I rescued Len and Miku? After we fled the home and Nero was left behind? The whole time?" I narrowed my eyes. "Was your friendship with Rui and Zeito ever even real?"

Mikuo had the nerve to look ashamed as he all of a sudden found his shoes of great interest. The other speaker, the woman, smiled at me as she studied me with her ginger eyes. She came alone, or so it seemed. In times such as this, no way I was going to judge by appearances alone.

"You're the sister of that foul-mouthed Love Wrecker." The woman looked me up and down. Her clothing was all gray. A Streamer. "Mr. G is very interested in you, Rin Kagamine. Why, I don't think your missing eye would matter to him that's how much he wants you. He's never been one to care whether or not his items were damaged."

Maybe random strangers knowing my name was supposed to throw me off a little bit, but I had been through enough to know not to question anything. From what I could gather in those few seconds between replies, this woman knew who I was, what I was, and pretty much everything else about me. By this point, I gave up in believing that I had at any period some sort of private life.

"What happened to him?" I snarled, unable to form any other words. He had to be alive. He _had_ to be okay.

"What happened to whom? Him?" The ginger cocked her head to the side. The she giggled. I wanted to rip her throat our with my teeth. "Oh, _him_. The really cute, goofy dirty blond with the dimple and great sense of humor."

I growled. She laughed. "You had better tell me what happened to him before I make you tell me," I threatened.

Huffing, the woman placed her hands on her hips and places all her weight on one leg. "He's in one piece, if that's what you're asking. Honest, we took good care of him. He would have been a useless package deal if he was damaged."

"And I should believe you because?" I asked.

The woman looked at Mikuo, who curled so far into himself it was as if he was trying to vanish from our presence. "Ask that one," she answered. "He's spoken with the blond recently. He's a witness to prove what I say is truth."

Eye glaring at Mikuo, I spit out each word. "Where. Is. Nero?"

Mikuo's Adam's apple bobbled. "Nero's okay. I swear! They were just saving him for a trade, when we were sure you would accept the trade offer."

 _"When we were sure."_ Mikuo was involved in this. He was involved in all of this!

"How long, Mikuo?" I asked, the words forced through my teeth. "How long have you been going behind our backs? And where's Ona?"

"No need to worry about that now." The ginger waved a hand. "What you should be concerned about is this trade he and I have been discussing."

I felt my heart throb in my throat. "What kind of trade?"

"Why, I think it's obvious," she answered with a smile. "In exchange for the safe return of your friend and the promised safety of the rest of your friends, we want you, Rin Kagamine. Leon G wants you specifically."


	3. Part 3

**What keeps us going? Our dreams? Our goals? Or our loved ones?**

 **Some would say determination, but why are we determined? What motivates us?**

 **For some, it's what we want out of life, even if we have to sacrifice everything to get it. For others, it's those we care about, even if we have to sacrifice ourselves.**

"How do I know that I can trust you?" I asked the Streamer. "You could be telling me all the things I want to hear just so I would willingly go with you. What do you have to offer me now so that I would want to go with you?"

The Streamer sighed and shook her head. "Is not Mikuo's word good enough?"

I glared at the man who looked away in shame. "Not when it was a mistake to trust him in the first place." I meant for my words to hurt, and it pleased me to see Mikuo flinch after they passed my lips. "You're going to have to try better than that if you want to convince me," I added.

"Very well." The Streamer put her fingers in her mouth and shot out a loud, high-pitched whistle. As I expected, she wasn't alone. People dressed in black and gray emerged from the shadows. Mikuo winced, but I didn't care to figure out why. What really demanded my interest was the two men who came up behind the Streamer, a familiar face in tow.

My knees nearly buckled out from under me. He was alive. He was okay. _He was really alive._

"Rin," Nero said my name, shock plastered all over his face. Then his questions came out in rapid fire. "Are you okay? What happened? Where are the others? Is everyone all right? Rin, are you wearing an eyepatch?"

One of the Love Wreckers holding Nero gave him a violent shake. Nero glared at him but did nothing else. There were bruises on his bare arms, but he seemed mostly unharmed. So the Streamer really was telling the truth.

"Happy now?" she asked, her tone that of boredom. Without waiting for my answer, she continued, "Will you come willingly, or do we have to force you? Because now that you're so close, we can't let you out of our grasp. Mr. G would be very displeased with us."

Shifting my weight from foot to foot, I carefully asked, "If I promise to come and don't put up a fight, you'll leave everyone else alone? You won't hunt them down? You'll let them live in peace?"

"You have not only my word, but Mr. G's word as well," the Streamer answered. I didn't know how valid her word was, but it was better than nothing. "We'll let him go, too," she added, nodding towards Nero as if I'd forgotten all about him.

"Rin," Nero began, "I don't know what you're planning, but don't do-" Again he was shaken into silence, but he got one more statement out. "Don't just give up! Remember what you're fighting for!"

"Nero," I said his name slowly, not wanting to say the rest. "This has gone on long enough. Now's my chance to save everyone, to protect those I love. Don't stop me from doing just that."

Ignoring Nero's protests, I approached the Streamer and held out my arms. She grinned. Before I could blink, cuffs were placed on my wrists.

The Streamer rubbed her hands together as she turned to the others and gleefully ordered, "Let the boy go with Mikuo. We have no need of him anymore." To Mikuo, "Thank you so much for your help. None of this would have been possible without you." Mikuo looked even more ashamed then when I first saw him talking to her, but he said nothing. To me, "Good night."

All I heard was Nero shouting my name when a force met the back of my skull, causing the world to go dark.

#

When I came to however long later, I was blindfolded, my arms were tied behind my back, and my body ached all over. Based on the vibrating that rang through my whole body, forcing my teeth to clang together, I inferred that I was in a moving vehicle of some sorts. I stretched out my body. I pointed my toes and stuck out my chin. No opposition. They must have put me in the back of a van.

With nothing else to do, I bid my time. The portion of the ride that occurred when I was conscious lasted about an hour. At first there was an occasional stop, possibly resulting from stop signs and red lights, but that only happened through the first ten minutes after I woke up. The lack of stops from there told me how populated the area we were now in was.

Then came the final stop. The driver and passenger got out of the vehicle, slamming the doors as they did so. Their voices grew louder as they approached where I was located. One was the Streamer from before. The other I didn't recognize.

"How many time do I have to say that I'm sorry?" the voice I didn't know, male, asked. "Miki, you know I never meant any of it."

The Streamer, Miki, huffed. "Do you really think I'm going to give you another chance after that 'funny' prank of yours? I'm still pissed at you, Piko."

"Will you ever forgive me?"

"Go to hell," was her answer.

"What do I have to do to convince you that I've changed?"

"You're a Love Wrecker. People like you don't ever change."

From what it sounded like, two car doors opened. Fresh air rushed in, giving my lungs a break from the stuffy air from the car ride. It all came on so quickly that I coughed a couple of times. I must have spent more time in the back of this vehicle than I thought.

"That's a very ignorant thing to say, Miki," I told the Streamer as soon as I could breathe normally again. "You judge someone based on who they are, not what they are. Only idiots believe that a person is their stereotype."

"Shut up, weirdo," was Miki's oh-so clever comeback.

"She's got a point," Piko replied.

"And you shut up, wuss!" Miki snapped. I felt something roughly grab my arm. "Let's go."

Miki and Piko grab each arm and force me from the back of the vehicle to my feet. Their grips are like tourniquet, and they each pull so hard that it's as if they're trying to get me to lose my balance so that they can drag me instead of my walking myself. Well, so be it.

I allow my knees to go out from under me. Both curse at the sudden weight they now have to carry. Being pulled along, I smirk at the extra hard work both have to go through. The best part was that they didn't try asking me to walk myself so that their job transporting me might be made easier. Maybe it was stupidity. Maybe it was pride. All I know for sure was I took pleasure out of making their lives hard in that moment.

Finally they drug me inside wherever it was they wanted to take me. Based on all the movies I've seen, they probably drove me into the middle of nowhere and have taken me inside an abandoned warehouse or barn or something of the like. The air had a stale, musky stench to it, so I wouldn't be surprised if that's exactly what I was taken to.

Miki and Piko dragged me a little further before they grunted in relief. They sat me in a cold, metal chair and tied my ankles to the chair legs. The bitter steel bit into my skin, forcing me to shiver all over. If I didn't know any better, I'd swear that they kept the chair in a freezer just so that it would be this uncomfortable to sit in once I arrived.

"Would someone mind giving me an electric blanket until I get warmed?" I asked, knowing damn well that nobody cared how I was doing but knowing that it would irritate them anyway. "Oh, and heat up a hot pocket or something for me while you're at it. I'm pretty hungry."

"Be quiet, Kagamine," Piko ordered. By the sound of it, he was standing upright. Maybe Miki was the one tying my ankles to the chair.

I kept talking. "It doesn't have to be a hot pocket. Anything instant would be fine."

"I said, 'be quiet.'"

"You know, I could really go for some instant noodles right about no-"

The blow to my face was so hard that my head nearly jerked right off my neck. The force caused me to bite my tongue, and a pool of blood built up in my mouth. I swished it around, mixing the blood with the saliva.

"If you say one more fu-"

I didn't let Piko finish. Using the sound of his voice, I aimed my head towards him and spat. Growing up, even the Love Wrecker girls were grossed out at how I "spit like a man." I took pride in it. That day, there was a whole lot to be proud of.

Piko cried out in surprise and rage. Swearing, he yelled about how he was going to kill me after Mr. G was finished whatever it was he was planning to do. Miki simply laughed before saying, "You will do no such thing. One, Mr. G won't allow it; and two, if she's already getting the better of you while blindfolded and her hands tied behind her back, you would need a really unfair advantage to kill her in the ways you're describing."

"Who gives a damn about being fair?" Piko snarled. "This is a dog-eat-dog world, Miki. You take whatever advantage you can and sacrifice anyone in your way. Being fair is just a fairytale."

I was about to comment that someone was obviously not their parents' favorite child when a new voice said, "That is enough, you two."

"Yes, sir," Miki was quick to say, all playfulness from her tone gone. Piko just grunted.

"Looks like you'll either need to figure out how you're going to wash the blood from your pants before they stain, or find a new uniform altogether, Utatane," this new speaker said.

Growling, Piko began, "She started it."

"I was provoked," I corrected. My tongue was still bleeding, and since I didn't want to swallow the blood, I allowed the thick, red liquid drip down my chin. Miki must have noticed, because it was a woman who groaned in disgust.

"If you don't keep your filthy mouth shut," Piko began, but he did not get to finish his threat.

"That is enough," the mystery man ordered. "Leave, both of you. Oh, and remove her blindfold before you go. I want to be able to look Rin in the eyes when I speak to her."

With unnecessary force, the blindfold was yanked from my head. I glared in the direction that Piko's voice had come from. Before me was a guy not much older than Len. He had silver hair and mismatched eyes – one blue and the other green. Truth be told, he wasn't as scary-looking as his voice implied. If anything, he looked pretty dainty and feminine. It made his scowl look a lot more humorous than the scary he undoubtedly intended.

After Piko and Miki had gone, I took in my surroundings. I still couldn't tell if I was in an abandoned warehouse or barn, but it was definitely an abandoned building. The metal walls were almost rusted through, and the dirt on the floor was so thick there was no way of knowing if beneath it all was concrete or wood. The room we were in was small and had doors in both the front of the room and back. Behind me, the door Piko and Miki went out of slammed shut. In front of me, the double doors stayed open, revealing nothing but an endless abyss of black.

The man himself wasn't too interesting. He was dressed in a bright green polo shirt and wore light blue jeans. His sneakers even looked old and beaten, and one shoelace had, by the looks of it, long since lost an aglet. Nothing about the man seemed intimidating. He grinned like he and I were going to have a good time. I grinned right back.

"So you're Len's sister," he purred.

My grin vanished. "What the hell did you do to him?" I growled like a hungry animal.

Chuckling, the man ignored my demand. "I really had my interests in the wrong place this whole time. To convince Love Wreckers to act like actual Love Wreckers? The hell was I thinking? Anyone can be trained to behave in such a way. It's human nature, really. All of humanity is plagued by its selfish interests and its vulnerability to be corrupted from trusting and caring for anyone. As much as they hated what we did to them, it took little to no effort to push them to dive into what their very nature had been this whole time calling them to become. But you?" He laughed. It sickened me. "You choose to be the way you are. Of course Love Makers can also be selfish and conniving, but you really take the cake. One thing I do wonder is how much of the way you are now would have still existed if you never took your brother's place. Would you have been a real sweetheart, or would you be just as . . . pleasant a person you are now?"

"What do you want?" I asked, my words tasting of poison. "Do you plan to 'rehabilitate' me like you did to Len and Miku?"

"I wouldn't dream of it," the man answered. "By the way, I really should introduce myself, hmmm?" I was already certain that this was the talked about Mr. G, but it didn't hurt to have him prove me correct. "Leon G, at your service."

"And what service are you providing, Leon?"

Leon grinned. "You really are no different from your brother, are you? Why, it's almost as if I'm talking with him again. Makes me wonder if you two have very similar personalities, or if he modeled your behavior to convince us that our experiments were making some sort of progress."

"What do you want?" I repeated.

"To talk." Leon approached me and then knelt down so that we were facing eye-to-eye. "Oh, no," he mused. "You lost your eye, didn't you? Well, that isn't an issue. I don't want you for your body, although it would help to keep you healthy."

"If I'm not to be used as an experiment," I began, "then what is my purpose for being here?"

Instead of answering right away, Leon studied me. He looked me up and down, judging every little detail. Perhaps I should have felt naked under his eye, but I didn't. In my mind, I dared him to look inside of me to see what I truly was. I mentally challenged him to look inside my heart and not flinch at what he saw.

"I want information," he finally said after minutes of studying my very presence. "How did you become the very opposite of what you're meant to represent? How did you go so against your nature and not fall apart over it? Is it possible that it's not nature at all that determines these things? Is this system your people hold so tightly onto really this flawed and, dare I say, useless?" He looked me in the eye. "Your testimony could mean everything. Our experiments do . . . have their flaws, but your existence itself is proof of our theory. Why, with your help, we can tear this world down. We can burn to ashes what has damned us both."

Truth be told, burning the world down really did sound appealing. So much of me wanted to make all who had hurt me suffer, but it wasn't what I really wanted. All I cared about was my loved ones. As long as they were safe, I had no other goals or motives. I could have helped Leon destroy the system, but in the end, what really was in it for me? What was in it for those I cared about? Would the short-term satisfaction really be worth siding with the one who hurt my brother beyond repair?

Yeah, as if.

"I won't help you do anything," I said, sounding braver than I felt. There was no knowing what they would do to me to get me to cooperate, but I had no plans to give in so easily. "You threw that opportunity away the second you began to use Len to further your own sick agenda. If you think I would help you after you treated my brother as your personal guinea pig, then you're a lot dumber than you look."

Leon's face darkened. "You sound so determined for one who's tied to a chair while I'm fully capable of doing whatever I please to you."

"You won't kill me." That I said with no doubt in my heart. "You need me. It's my testimony you want, but it's useless to you if I'm not the one repeating it. Whether you like it or not, I'm your best witness, and you can't get much use out of me if I'm dead now, can you?"

Leaning in so close that I could feel his breath on my skin, Leon asked, "What is it you want, Kagamine?"

With the sweetest voice I could muster, I softly answered, "I want your head on a silver platter."

"Don't think I won't go back on my promise to leave your friends alone." Leon glared at me. "If you won't talk willingly, I will get you to talk with other means. Is that what you want?"

"You seem to be missing the point." I narrowed my eyes, and we stared each other down. Sooner of later, one of us would give in. "You're not getting me as your willing ally because of how quick you were to hurt the ones I love. What makes you think hurting them more is going to change anything?"

"You would do anything to protect them."

"Keep in mind that there's a lot that falls under 'anything.'"

Having it in him to look amused, Leon pulled back, smiled, and asked, "Is that a threat?"

I returned the smile. "It's a promise."

 _Tsk, tsk, tsk._ Leon waved his finger at me. "Mark my words, Rin Kagamine. I will get you to help me."

"Really, I'd like to see you try."

Clearly frustrated, Leon drew back his arm to slap me. However, he was interrupted. The ground vibrated. The walls shook. What sounded like a loud _BOOM_ echoed all around. Leon looked at me as if he should have seen this coming. I smiled back, not using my words to tell him that he should.

Next thing he knew, the doors were thrown open. People charged in. Leon shouted in rage. We were engulfed by the new arrivals and-

Well . . . I don't think you need me to tell you the rest.

* * *

Examining her nails, Rin looks back at the man. She narrows her eyes - one natural, the other glass - at him. "Are we through now?" she asks.

Styrofoam cups lie scattered across the desk. Most are drained empty. One sits upright, the scent of coffee wafting the air. The brunet man rests his face in his hands. His shoulders are slumped, and his fingers grip his hair. "How did they find you?" is his answer. "How did your friends know where to look?"

Rin snorts. "It was too easy. What Leon should have done was keep Mikuo and Nero from finding the others. Hell, he probably wouldn't have allowed that to happen had he known just how stupid Miki was. By the time those two found the others, Miku knew to immediately start demanding Mikuo to tell the others where I was. Honestly, having Nero as witness was what damned Mikuo in the end. Rui and Zeito would never have believed Miku otherwise.

"Knowing that nobody was looking for us, Rui and Zeito screwed secrecy and tried to contact Tonio. Through him we learned that Ona had been given false leads thanks to Mikuo and no had no idea where we were. Once that was settled, Tonio got the information from Mikuo about where Leon would hide me. With that info in hand, Tonio sent reinforcements to get me. While this happened, Miku and Len went to the Love World police because we couldn't continue on with this mafia-styled life any longer. That's why we're here, getting interviewed over and over by people like you who clearly just want to go home."

The man groans, confirming Rin's words. He looks at her, his eyes drooping. With a sigh, he says, "That will be all, thank you."

Rin's natural eye lights up. "I can go now? We're done here?"

"Yeah, yeah." The man waves his hand. "Just go."

As she lets the door close behind her, she can hear the man groan once more. They have been going through this interview process since the sun rose this morning, and now it was past midnight. The man had to interview everyone at least once. Rin almost feels sorry for him. Almost.

Stepping into the waiting room, she observes her loved ones. Miku and Len have started to act like friends again. It upsets Miku that her brother betrayed them - she went from having someone who could begin to understand her only to have him ripped away just as suddenly as he appeared. Without either of them looking for it, Len became the one source of comfort she depended most on. They are talking about something, but Rin isn't sure what. Regardless of the topic, at least both of them are smiling.

Nero stares into his coffee. Rin notices that whenever she's gone to be interviewed, he always looks so concerned when she comes back. Biting her lip, Rin wonders just what direction their relationship will take. Since their reunion, Rin and Nero have spent more time together, albeit there isn't much free time for either of them. Nonetheless, they have sought any and every opportunity to hang out as friends. Neither have asked where their relationship stands, but neither has tried to push the subject. Let everything take its course at a natural rate, Rin thinks often. Don't force love to come. If it's meant to be, it will happen on its own. When the time comes, if it ever does, they will know, and they will be ready.

Lastly, Rin sighs for the missing two. Having been involved in all this since the true beginning, Rui and Zeito needed a lot more than a daylong event to tell someone everything they know. They should be safe, Rin is constantly told, but it might be a while before she or anyone else sees them again. At least they won't be locked up like Mikuo is.

Finally deciding to join her friends, Rin casually walks towards them and takes her place next to Nero. He wraps an arm around her in a side hug, and she leans in to feel his warmth. It feels like home.

"We can go now," she announces to them. "They don't have anything else they want from us, so we're free."

"'Free' might not mean what you think it means," Len replies, but his eyes are shining with relief.

"What do they plan to do with us?" Miku asks, wringing her fingers.

"I don't know, but I won't let anyone take any of you away again," Nero answers. "I lost you once too many."

That made Rin smile. Standing upright, with Nero following suit, she looks at the others and says, "No knowing what tomorrow brings, but no sense in worrying over what we can't control. Now let's go. I'm thinking we get milkshakes."

 **End of Book V**

 **of**

 **The Love Vanishing Diaries**

* * *

 **Author's Note: This series took a lot longer to write than I anticipated, but it's over now! Needless to say, I learned a lot about series writing with The Love Vanishing Diaries, and I hope those lessons won't be soon forgotten.**

 **Now that this is officially off my plate, I can finally focus on other projects. I have a few in mind I'm _super_ excited about, and I can't wait to share them with you all soon! They're pretty different from what I have posted thus far, but it's a change I'm ready to make. I hope you will be looking forward to these new fanfics!**

 **-Fantastical**


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